Graduate Professional Masters in Green Building

 
Degree description | Who should enroll? | Course requirements
Admissions | Program Coordinator
 

Degree description:

Sustainable living is a vital issue on many people’s minds today. Mainstream public and politicians alike have resolved to reduce pollution and waste and reverse global warming. This is particularly true for those in the building industry, whose daily decisions have a critical impact on the health and well-being of the community and the environment.

Building accounts for approximately 40% of U.S. primary energy consumption (USDOE 2004)

This non-thesis option in the Forest Resources Graduate Program will focus on professional training in environmentally responsible building practices.

Students will learn:

• Energy conservation methods in residential design
• LEED-certified building requirements
• Design with sustainable building materials
• Green planning and development policies
• Green initiatives on infrastructure, roads and bridges

Courses will naturally come from several disciplines. Students will be required to integrate concepts of resource stewardship, economic vitality, and social equity.

Who should enroll?

• Architects, Engineers, Builders and Building Officials who wish to enhance their knowledge of sustainable building methods and materials.
• Design and construction professionals who desire a deeper understanding of the environmental impact of construction and ways to mitigate it.
• Students in the building field seeking a focused, non-thesis graduate program that allows for interdisciplinary study and practical training.

Course requirements:

Please note: Courses and course schedules are subject to change.

Students will work with their academic advisor to select the most appropriate combination of courses for their study.

In addition to completing a 6 credit practicum BMATWT 698Y, students must earn a minimum of 30 graduate credits per the lists below. Each course is worth 3 credits with the exception of the practicum.

Required courses:

• BMATWT 698Y – Internship in Green Building (6 credits)
• NRC 601 – Research Concepts, Fall

Courses in the departmental field (select 4 – at least one 600 or higher level):

• BMATWT 540 – Design of Timber Structures, Spring, (prerequisites)
• NRC 549 – Ecosystem Management
• NRC 697D – Social Conflict and Natural Resource Policy, Fall
• POLISCI 784 – Environmental Policy
• REGIONPL 558 – Issues In Environmental Management
• REGIONPL 591G – S-Housing & Public Health
• REGIONPL 577 – Urban Policies
• REGIONPL 693S - S-Planning for/with Multiple Publics, Fall
• RES-ECON 720 – Environmental and Resource Economics, Fall
• SOCIOL 565 – Sociology and Ecology of Community
• W&FCONSV 697U&V – Urban-suburban Wildlife Ecology & Management, Fall

Courses from outside the departmental field (select 5 – no more than one 400 level course):

• ARCH-DES 520 – Building Physics 1/Energy Efficient Housing, Fall
• CE-ENGIN 490A – Sustainable Aspects of Civil and Environmental Engineering
• ENGLISH 499 C-D – Imagining a Sustainable World
• ENV-HLTH 565 – Environmental Health Practices
• ENV-HLTH 660 – Issues in Environmental Health Policy & Law
• ENVIRDES 553 – Resource Policy & Planning
• ENVIRSCI 445 – Environmental Problem Solving in the Community
• GEO-SCI 444 – Sense of Place and Environmental Behavior
• GEO-SCI 420 – Human Impact on the Environment, Spring
• LANDARCH 591F – Green Urbanism
• LANDARCH 591B – Sustainable Communities, Spring
• LEGAL 497N – Environmental Justice, Fall
• M&I-ENG 551 – Thermal Environmental Engineering
• M&I-ENG 570 - Solar&Dir Enrgy Conv, Spring (prerequisites)
• PUBHLTH 590H – Indoor Environment and Health, Fall (prerequisites)

Admissions:

General guidelines for graduate admissions can be found at the University's Graduate School website.

Program Coordinator:

Please direct all inquiries about the Professional Masters in Green Building to:

Dr. Peggi Clouston, P.Eng.
Assistant Professor

University of Massachusetts
160 Holdsworth Way
Amherst, MA 01003-9285, USA
Phone: 413-545-1884
Fax: 413-545-4358
Email: clouston@forwild.umass.edu